Aaron Collins' Film-tier Chapter 5
by Psychoflop
Summary: The end is "'tier"


Chapter 5: Epilogue (recorded onto a vinyl record and transcribed...after)

"_March 28__th__, 2014 – It has been almost 2 months since that fateful gunfight. I'm still not entirely in perfect health, but I've never been and I managed to visit Andrey every day so I could write down the entire adventure (and not just the part that I was in). I suppose it's only fitting that I, Aaron C. Start recording this chapter on Andrey's birthday. He turned 38 today assuming he was born on the same day as he was on my home-world, and we were about to start a night out on the town. Let's see if I can remember some dialogue from a few hours ago:_

_Ready to go, Andrey?_

_'Yes, are you sure you want to do this?'_

_Yes. If I lived in fear of myself and the problems inside of me, I would never go outside. Although I've had to filter out a lot of bad people over the year, and that took more out of me than I care to admit._

_Wow, that was easy...Anyway, Andrey put a hand on my shoulder in sympathy, the looks we exchanged with each other were enough (silent bond, no ho yay here Mr. Tong). We headed out to the Tourist, and everyone who was a part of those few days in the first 4 chapters were there waiting for us. I suppose under normal circumstances, they might have shouted 'SURPRISE!' or something when we came in through the door, but it was decided that they shouldn't risk triggering another one of my episodes. It was a great spread, everyone in town 'donated' what they could (Andrey particularly liked the vegetable platters Laurie arranged) as word got out that Andrey and the rest of us had vanquished the Aborussianal Mafiya, once and for all. The Siberian governor, Vladimir Ulyanov IV even honoured us all for 'outstanding contributions to all of Russia.'_

_Sherry will be leaving the Tourist soon. For bigger and better things, she'll be setting out to tour Imperial China and Japakorea, a rare privilege for an outsider, especially a woman._

_Isaac was allocated more money in the federal budget, allowing for several deputies. Adam, David, Jason, Melinda, Harley, Aaron L. Found it awkward to be taking legitimate jobs, but they have adjusted nicely._

_James switched to part-time as an undertaker, discovering 2 hidden talents: Singing and Piano playing, so at night he plays at the saloon instead to prepare customers for Sherry's pending departure._

_Laurie retired the day after the gunfight (it scared her to own a saloon so infamous, signing the ownership papers to Allan (who was looking to take over anyway). He promptly left his post...well...table as the local card shark, but Trevor filled in (as there was no longer a need for a cooler and he knew how to play poker already)._

_I sold the clockpunk story and this one to a publisher in Moscow. With the advance I received (they like my work), I set up a retirement fund for my mom. She'll accompany Sherry to Japakorea, then take a ship to the Ghost Continent. She'll be the second (after me thanks to the book tour), to head to North America in this world in over a century._

_Damon still tends bar (but serves more upstanding citizens), Krystal still cuts hair (and finally gets to do a few perms), Justin is still a Doctor (only with less life-threatening patients, and even a few pets) and Rob still runs the bank. And with the A.M. gone, they're all happier._

_As for Kate and Susan, well, I'm in their room now (Nothing happened you dirty perverts). They're sleeping and I'm recording all of this to a record to be transcribed later in printed form (like taking notes for a big project)...I suppose it was inevitable that you found me, as I've been here a lot longer than I was in the clockpunk world. Sorry constant reader, the inter-dimensional figure in black from my last novella has found me again, so I'll be leaving this universe by projecting myself into another world, another adventure..._

_'No you won't Mr. Collins. You won't survive another one from what I see of your mind. You're not even the only Aaron doing this. You're not even the first we were watching.'_

_...And he's turned his eyes on again, which means he's here to put me completely_

_out of existence._

_'Wrong again. My orders have changed since our last encounter. I am only to bring you to the centre of the multiverse and detain you while we determine who the original Aaron is.'_

_I'm the original Aaron, who the hell do you think you are to suggest that I'm not?_

_'No, Mr. Collins, you most certainly are not the original. You are part of your own multiverse and you don't even know who you are inside of it'_

_And If I try to escape? AHHHHHH, MY HEAD! YOU ASSHOLE, MY NOSE IS BLEEDING AGAIN!_

_'Yes Mr. Collins. As you can feel, I can induce your episodes. Although given how close you are to death, I almost don't have to do anything to you. Actually, I'm sorry'_

_Do I have your word that you will not even so much as threaten my friends on this world this time?_

_'That I can give you my word on.'_

_OK, I'll go quietly_

"Did you say something, Aaron? Aaron?"

Aaron made no response, this is Kate taking over by the way. Aaron kept recording after he fell asleep so I transcribed what I heard on the record and am now writing what happened when I woke up. I tried to get Aaron awake, and when he did not respond, I checked his pulse. It was very faint, I ran out of my room and yelled for Dr. Welsh to leave the party and come upstairs quickly. He obliged, and began performing a new technique taught to him by his old professor. I had seen it once before a couple of weeks ago, performed on Aaron (irony). When Mr. Collins came to, Justin explained what was going on. Aaron just laughed and in the true spirit of himself, he named it "Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation". I (and a few others), had trouble saying that, so Aaron told us to say CPR for short (much better).

Anyway, I'm writing here because he did not wake up this time. Aaron Collins...died...on March 29th, 2014 (3 weeks shy of turning 31 years old). Justin estimates that he died around 1:00 am of internal bleeding. In accordance to a recent will, we're dividing his estate and taking care of his posthumous material. But that is not the weirdest thing about that night. That was a tie between:

A) Who was Aaron talking to while he was speaking the first part of this chapter? That voice was so low in pitch that I am hard-pressed to even call the 2nd voice human and

B) I overheard Krystal and Justin mention something about the colour of Aaron's eyes. According to them, they had "changed back to normal" and it occurred to me that they were right. How can someone's eye change colour as much as Aaron's eyes did.

I don't have any answers to give you, I'm just the 1 who got to take an 80-90% complete novella and get it up over 20,000 words (I should succeed soon enough). If I were to make a guess though, I would say that the worlds Aaron travelled to were authentic (and if his confession to Dr. Welsh in the last chapter really happened, it would explain a lot). It's a nice theory, a working theory but ultimately, I have no evidence.

Then again, maybe the 2nd voice on the record...is my evidence.

To be continued...


End file.
